Idam Jagath Review

Idam Jagath Review & Rating

Idam Jagat: Desi-Creativity Killed a Fantastic Subject

The premise

Sumanth's Idam jagat created a bit of curiosity among the movie buffs with the promise of an interesting thriller. With the success of Kshanam, interest in thrillers grew among the Telugu filmmakers. A rare genre in general, 2018 has witnessed a handful of thrillers in Telugu. What and where idam Jagat with a terrific title and a talented lead actor has in store for us and in what way it differentiates itself among a host of such films is interesting.

Also, there is a strong buzz that this movie closely resembles the well-loved Hollywood film Nightcrawler. After a lengthy delay, finally, this film hits the screens. Let's see if Sumanth continued his new-found success and if the comments of Nightcrawler freemake are true with Idam Jagat review.

The story

Nishith is a youngster who has a sleep disorder. He couldn't get sleep in the nights and wanders along on the streets. Once a doctor suggested he better get a job where he has to work on night shifts rather than roaming around. With a lack of job and boredom, slowly Nishith turns his attention to crimes.

One day, he comes across a group of guys who are shooting a crime and then selling the footage to a news channel. Inspired by this, he begins shooting crime scenes. Once he gets the taste of this, Nishith even goes to the extent of orchestrating crimes risking his life in the process to earn big bucks.

His relationship with his girlfriend, Mahathi, a software engineer turned teacher which is based on a lie gets strained because of his nighttime activities. His misadventures and amoral behavior finally lead him to be entangled in a big crime nexus with a big risk to the life of Mahathi. In between, Mahathi leaves him once the lie is uncovered. How Nishith copes with all this and comes out of the tangle and unite with Mahathi again and earn a huge amount to settle down form the rest of the story.

Writing and direction

The movie is certainly a freemake of Nightcrawler if it is not an official remake. As long as the director followed the original premise, the movie turned out to be a fairly interesting thriller. But the additions to cater to the Telugu audience (like giving the hero a moral compass) failed miserably. The love story is also an addition to the original plot and it feels contrived. There is no chemistry between the lead actors. The heroine looked entirely clueless as to what to do on the screen.

The final twist of a big mafia involvement is surprisingly bland. Our Telugu filmmakers abused mafia genre to the core and how long should we suffer from these insipid settings? Anyone in their right mind won't dilute the story when they have a strong source. Alas! Our filmmakers fail to understand story dynamics and mismatch genres and unnecessary paddings.

But here like many youngsters who are inspired by Hollywood movies did with several previous films, Anil Kumar completely failed the subject. Every addition he had given the core story only contributed to the undoing of the flow of this film. A well-made freemake is better than insipid creativity which amounts to nothing. Even the so-called twists fail to create intrigue. The climax appears forced.

Sumanth and comedian Satya excel

Sumanth, as usual, did very well as a crime reporter who has a bent of mind to make it big in terms of money (not morality). He looked the part and tried his best to carry the film with his acting force. Anju Kurien didn't get a proper characterization and failed to light the screen up. She is a mismatch to Sumanth and her performance is a bit better than mediocre. Blame it on characterization?

Comedian Satya as a sidekick who doesn't support the amoral activities of the protagonist is good. he is surprisingly good in a serious role. Aditya Menon who played the lead antagonist doesn't appear on the screen much but did decently. The rest of the cast did an okayish job.

The crew

The music by Sricharan Pakala is terrific when it comes to the background score. Songs and the entire love track are like the speed breakers in the highway from Bengaluru to Mysuru. Should have been avoided for a taut 90 minute film. The editing is pretty average. The cinematography is okayish but the way within the budget limits the night shots are canned is admirable. The art department and the production values are passable.

Finally

The uninspiring additions to the original subject and the listless direction killed what could have been a brilliant thriller despite a freemake tag. Sumanth and Satya's best efforts and some good job by the music director are wasted. Except when you desperately want to watch a Telugu film this weekend, better avoid this and watch Nightcrawler and make your day.

Positives

Story idea

Sumanth and Satya

Negatives

Unnecessary desi-creativity

Insipid direction

Unnecessary love track

Rushed climax

Low production values

Pycker Rating: 1.5 out of 5

Idam Jagath Critic Reviews

Idam Jagath User Reviews

Srinivas

29 Dec 18 @ 3:44 PM

Idam Jagath Preview

What is Idam Jagat About?

Sumanth has been on a successful track of comeback lately with a couple of successful movies in his kitty. But what eluded him is a blockbuster success. He pinned all his hopes on Idam Jagat directed by debutant Anil Kumar. 2018 has seen several thrillers released but only a very few have struck a chord with the audience. Idam Jagat promises to be a pure thriller and it's not even one more day for us to watch this film on the big screens.

The story of this film concern that of a crime news reporter and his nighttime exploits shooting the footage of various crimes. As he tells his friend, while trees falling down and cars exploding are news to others, crimes, murders etc. are his news. He even says that the price for one of his latest footage is increasing to the surprise of his friend who says our reporter is selfish.

Idam Jagat Promises

An intriguing thriller

Thriller as a genre is quite rare in Telugu Cinema with a few films hitting the screen every now and then and not many making a mark. But Idam Jagat promises to follow a different route. There is an eerie bit similarity for this film with the 2014 Hollywood thriller Nightcrawler and whether it is an inspiration or an official remake is not yet known.

But whatever, Idam Jagath is an intriguing thriller and Sumanth appears to have nailed the role of a journalist who knows his business very well. Also, the title gives a hint that the movie also explores the saying that Dhana Moolam Idam Jagat from which the title has been taken.

Sumanth's Performance

Choices made by Sumanth might not have been correct in his early career but he never disappointed with his performances. A subtle actor from the Akkineni stable, he has proved himself to be a capable performer who is able to carry an entire film on his shoulders. As a crime reporter with a mission, though not exactly for a greater good, Sumanth has a chance to deliver a power-packed performance. And he is sure not to disappoint.

The Crew

Anil Kumar, the debutant director comes up with a thriller and promises an engaging ride this weekend. The way he handled various story points (as evidenced by the trailer) seems to be applause-worthy. Sricharan Pakala's score in the trailer is really brilliant. If he delivers a similarly excellent work, it will help take the movie to the next level.

Bal reddy's cinematography is atmospheric as the genre demands and the lighting he used (as evidenced by the trailer) is good. The production values by Virat Film Makers and Sri Vignesh Karthik Cinema are expected to be competent.

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